Vancouver Canucks left wing Daniel Sedin reacts after scoring on Minnesota Wild goalie Ilya Bryzgalov during the third period of an NHL game in St. Paul, Minn., Wednesday, March 26, 2014. The Canucks won 5-2.Ann Heisenfelt
/ AP

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Alex Burrows insisted he was fine, had no signs of a concussion and was perfectly lucid a couple of hours after getting hit in the head by Nino Niederreiter. Then, as he sat by himself in the Vancouver Canucks' dressing room, Burrows started babbling to no one about Dennis Martinez and the Montreal Expos from 25 years ago.

Uh, you sure you're OK, Alex?

“Yeah, I'm fine,” Burrows smiled. “I heard some guys talking about the Expos. Big baseball games in Montreal this weekend. The Blue Jays are playing.”

Burrows' fondness for baseball is nearly as great as his love of hockey. The winger from Montreal attended a game at Fenway Park in Boston the summer after the Canucks lost the 2011 Stanley Cup final to the Boston Bruins. Burrows wore a disguise.

He wasn't sort of pretending to be healthy on Wednesday. After making a surprise return to the Canuck lineup two games after a unpenalized slash by Nashville Predator defenceman Shea Weber split the tip of Burrows' left thumb, the 33-year appeared to suffer his fifth injury of the National Hockey League season when he was shouldered in the head by Niederreiter in the second period of Vancouver's 5-2 win against the Minnesota Wild.

Burrows lay on the ice for several seconds, then went directly to the dressing room. But he returned before the end of the period. So did Niederreiter, who was assessed only a minor penalty for interference.

“As soon as I got up, I knew I was fine,” Burrows said. “But I've had two concussions before and both times I got up and my legs went all Bambi on me. So I wanted to be sure. Nowadays, you don't take any chances and there's a protocol.

“The doctor came into the room and asked me a bunch of questions. It was kind of annoying because I wanted to get back out there and play, but you have to be careful.”

Burrows, who had significant foot, jaw and hand injuries earlier this season, logged 14:09 of ice time with his thumb in a splint.

“My second shift I got slashed in exactly the same place and I felt it a little bit,” the 32-year-old said. “But then the pain went away. You don't realize how much stickwork there is. This morning I felt so good, just feeling the puck and shooting. But there's so much stickwork, guys hitting your stick and battling, that's when I felt it sometimes.”

MOULSON GOLDEN: Matt Moulson's emotional roller-coaster ride is over. At least until the end of this season.

The winger, traded twice this season, had six points in four games for the Wild before Wednesday after managing only a goal and assist in his first six games after the Buffalo Sabres traded him to Minnesota at the March 5 deadline for Torrey Mitchell and a pair of second-round draft picks.

Moulson spent the last four seasons with the New York Islanders and was as shocked as most people in hockey when he was dealt to Buffalo in October along with first- and second-round picks for the disappointing Thomas Vanek.

Moulson and his wife, Alicia, have a five-month-old son and 19-month-old daughter, and the player was frequently cut off from his family amid his professional upheaval. Their off-season home is in Connecticut.

“It feels like we've lived in a different spot every week,” Moulson, 30, said. “But it's good to know I'm somewhere I can't be traded again until the end of the season. It's a comforting feeling.

“You always want to be around your kids and see them growing. Technology – Facetime and Skype – make it a little easier to see them and you couldn't do that in the past. But you wish you could be around more to help out. It's something you know you're getting into when you become a professional athlete. It's still just a blink in life.”

Moulson is eligible for unrestricted free agency on July 1 and the Canucks should be one of the teams bidding on him if he actually makes it to market.

STILL IN BLUM: After spending most of this season in the American Hockey League, former Vancouver Giants' junior star Jon Blum is back in the NHL with the Wild due to a groin injury to ex-Canuck defenceman Keith Ballard.

Blum, 25, badly wanted to join the Canucks as a free agent last summer, but the team chose instead to sign Yannick Weber.

“It definitely would have been a fit for me because I played junior hockey there and know the city and know people,” Blum said before going minus-one in 12:57 of ice time against Vancouver. “I feel comfortable there. But I think I made a great choice in Minnesota. They told me I was going to start in the minors. I didn't mind being down there and helping some of the younger guys. I just made sure I was ready when my name was called.”

QUOTEBOOK: Canuck coach John Tortorella on injuries after captain Henrik Sedin missed his first game due to a sore knee: “I'll be honest with you – and I think people will probably jump on me – I don't think you can assess our team completely (due to injuries this season). I'm not complaining, I'm not making excuses; I think you need to try to find your way. We've had some major injuries. But we can't lose seven straight. We can't get into that type of funk. (But) we did, and that's why we're in the situation we are right now.”

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.